Veterans groups blast proposed tea party cuts

A proposal to cut $4.5 billion from Veterans Affairs Department health programs to reduce government spending has earned a quick, sharp rebuke from major veterans groups.

Proposed by Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., the freeze in veterans health care funding — along with a cut in disability compensation for veterans also receiving Social Security disability benefits — are part of a $400 billion package of spending cuts that the tea party leader says could be enacted to avoid increasing the $14.3 trillion cap on government borrowing.

Disabled American Veterans called Bachmann’s ideas “ill-advised,” “nothing short of heartless” and “wrong-headed.”

Veterans of Foreign Wars said she was “totally out of step with America’s commitment to our veterans.”

Veterans for Common Sense said they were “outraged” that her proposal “would leave veterans twisting in the wind.”

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“It is unconscionable that while our nation is at war, someone would even think of forcing our wounded warriors to sacrifice even more than they already have,” said David Gorman of the DAV. “Their injuries and disabilities were the result of their service to the nation, and our nation must not shirk its responsibilities toward them. How do you tell a veteran who has lost a limb that he or she has not sacrificed enough? Yet Rep. Bachmann wants to do just that.”

Bachmann’s proposal would result in a reduction of up to $2,224 a month in veterans’ disability compensation for a veteran who also receives Social Security Disability Income, known as SSDI. Additionally, it would freeze veterans’ health care funding at current levels.

Richard Eubank, VFW national commander, said his organization will work to stop the proposal. “No way, no how, will we let this proposal get any traction in Congress,” he said.

“There are certain things you do not do when our nation is at war, and at the top of that list is not caring for our wounded and disabled servicemen and women when they return home,” Eubank said. “The day this nation can’t afford to take care of her veterans is the day this nation should quit creating them.”

Paul Sullivan, executive director of Veterans for Common Sense, who first spotted the proposal on Bachmann’s official congressional website, said 10,000 new veterans a month are seeking treatment from VA.

“In the middle of this dramatically increasing need at VA to care for our veterans, comes Rep. Michele Bachmann,” he said, calling her efforts to cut veterans funding just as combat operations appear to be winding down in Iraq is similar to cuts after the Vietnam War and the 1991 Gulf War that left VA struggling to care for veterans.

DAV’s Gorman said capping veterans’ health care funding “will not only freeze out sick and disabled veterans seeking care, it will also end up costing the federal government even more money.”

“With the number of veterans seeking health care rising, the effect of a freeze would be to either block enrollment of veterans, many of them just returning from battlefields in Iraq and Afghanistan, or to ration care to currently enrolled veterans, including disabled veterans who have relied on VA dating back to World War II,” Gorman said.

The Obama administration is prepared to cut federal spending, but not like this, said White House spokesman Shin Inouye.

“While we need to make tough choices across the federal government to get our deficits under control to be competitive in the global economy, we should do so in a way that upholds the sacred trust our nation has with its veterans, troops and military families,” Inouye said.

Replies to This Discussion

Cut Senate pay by 50% and they would still be making more then most people. Make them pay for there own medical insurance. Get rid of the EPA, BATF, Dept of Energy, Dept of Education, all the czars. Then we would have more then enough to run our government. None of these deptments has ever done the job they were created for, all they do is waste our money. And why do we send billions of our money to Egypt???? A friend and ally should not demand pay for there help!!!!

No kidding; my first thought when I heard what he was saying to Mubarak was "I hope you're listening to your own words because they apply here as much as there, to you, as much as Mubarak"! But I don't think he's open enough to any wisdom to get that.

She definatley blew it on this. Senators make thousands more then our military and have much better benifits. I will not stand by and let them cut anything Military. Our children have fought and died and come home highly damaged. We can not let this happen and need to let this idiot woman know it. Call, Email, Fax her into oblivion.

I picked schrapnel out of John P. back for 3 1/2 years after Nam. His wife has been picking it out for the last 40 years. He still has a chunk the size of a marble stuck in his head. He received 10% for 35 years for scars and now get 20% with 10 more for tinnitus. He is posted to the max and can't hear any more and should be at 70% or 80%. Lets cut his benefits hell he didn't earn them anyways. Bachmann better get her head out of her butt, there are 26 million vets plus their families, don't make us your enemies. Veterans are not an entitlement they are a bill for services rendered. Pay the GD BILL and cut the EPA, IRS, Congressional pay. your 30 staffers, your lifetime retirement, foreign aide, ethanol, sugar, grants to study frogs, illegal benefits and much more. You can cut anything you want but you better leave the Vets alone, we earned every thing we get and it ain't never been enough. A Nation will be judged by how it treats it's Veterans.

This person should be turned in I served at the end of Vietnam, I was HATED because I enlisted in 1974 when my mother god rest her soul signed my enlistment papers. I took every thing these men and women threw at me and NEVER regret one remark knowing I could never walk with them but always behind them. They walked a path I was to young to get on, they were my HEROS and all will always be dear to me this person has NO RIGHT to take from them or any WAR time VET. And I agree cut everywhere before you touch the veterans. When it comes to sacrifice these people know what needs to be done and are the first to STAND.

Rep Bachmann just got lowered down in my opinion. The veterans were all guaranteed certain benefits for the time they served, depending on the war time services they served. Countless thousands gave their life so these clowns who have penetrated the political establishment. Of the very few veterans presently in office are almost a disgrace to the military vets. For example the 3 purple heart winner that was all a fraud, (John Kerry) he was awarded them all in his mind, I was not especially fond of Bob Dole, though sadly he is the finest one of recent times I can/do recall.

Dole, he was a severely wounded vet though I have met and known several who had lost limbs, I had a long time good friends (He sadly passed a bit over a year ago) he suffered injuries from his item in the navy, when Hawaii was bombed by the Japanese, his ship was badly hit. Before they take a dime from any veteran, lets put the politicians in the VA hospitals for their medical care, cut their office benefits by 50%, cut their earnings by 50%. Cut Obama's constant travel, he is generally always on a trip with his entourage. Cut his 2 Billion dollar 10 day vacations.He had over 200 secret service agents, had the army build a tunnel for him to travel though at a cost of $$$$$, he wanted to look important to his Muslim countrymen, also was not a fleet of some 30 or more US Navy war ships in the harbor,. If it was such a dangerous place for him to go to he might ought not to. It was nothing more then his arrogant show of power for how important he thinks he is.

Cut Michelle's travels, such as her luxury trip to Paris, and some 70 or more rooms in a 5 star hotel @ $2500 per day for a week, 70 secret service, Cut of Pelosi's wings. she had to have a special and much bigger plane so it could fly across the country non stop. It was below her dignity to have to have a fuel stop. Stop the many flights of congress men/women making many trip to Iraq and Afghanistan. Let the generals prosecuting the war do what they know and are trained to do. There is billions of dollars of absolute fraud they could stop if they had a desire to. And more importantly close the Mexican border from illegal's and drugs entering the country. The county of Los Angeles alone is reportedly spending some 3 plus million a year in birthing babies of the illegal's. If it could be proved I am certain that the illegal's in the country are costing the country in excess of $50 Billion dollars in medical and housing, and education, and food stamps. cut the pensions of the politicians, put them on social security

If it were not for the veterans this would truly be a different country than what it is, and with the empty suits un the administration and the house and senate. For the sacrifice they have made to this country, they have earned every bit of it,

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